Combined child s carriage and sled



(No Model.)

T. s. MINNISS.

COMBINED GHILDS CARRIAGE AND SLED. No. 572,059. Patented Nov. 24, 1896.

. Inventor.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS S. MINNISS, OF MEADVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO ROLAND B.THOMPSON, OF SAME PLACE, AND A. CLARK BANE, OF PITTSBURG,

PENNSYLVANIA.

COMBINED CHILDS CARRIAGE AND SLED.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 572,059, dated November24, 1896.

Application filed July 19, 1895. Serial No. 556,4=75. (N model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS S. MINNISS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Meadville, in the county of Crawford and State ofPennsylvania, have invented an attachable sled to be used in combinationwith the ordinary childs wheeled carriage that can be converted at thepleasure of the user from the wheels to runners, or vice versa,almost'in- 1o stantly, of which the following is a specification.

\Vhere good sledding and bare walks alternate, as is the case in manynorthern towns and cities during the winter, ladies are forced I 5 totake the street with a childs ordinary sled when they reach a spot fromwhich the snow has been cleared, nor can they reach from the street astore or other entrance across a pavement which has been cleaned. Thesefacts render a combined sled and carriage desirable, and such haveheretofore been invented. Such prior combinations have, however, beenunnecessarily costly and elaborate, and it is the purpose of thisinvention to cheapen and simplify.

In the several views which make part of this invention, Figure 1 is aperspective of the sled proper. Fig. 2 is a plan of the device attachedto the axles of a carriage with the body of the carriage omitted. Fig. 3is a detail of one of the four swiveling links by which the sled isswung from the axles. Fig. 4is a side view of the adj usting-rods bywhich the sled is raised or lowered. Fig. 5 is a side 3 5 view of thedevice attached to a carriage with the body of the carriage omitted; andFig. 6, an end view of carriage with sled attached, but having only onerunner.

The sled proper is made of a single bar of either fiat or round steelabout threeeighths of an inch in diameter. A piece would be about ninefeet in length and is bent up into the shape seen in Fig. 1, where A Aare the runners, andB B the cross-bars. The weld is best made at thejunction of one of the crossbars with the curve of the runner. Thecross-bars are spaced so that the distance between them will be the sameas the distance between the axles F F of the carriage to which they areto be applied.

This will leave I a bearing for the runners on the ground of about ayard. The axles are fixed to the frame Gin the usual manner. 0 c arefour swinging links connecting the four ends of V the cross-bars to theaxles F F. The ends of 5 5 the links next the cross-bars are bent upinto eyes and the free end fastened by bolt H, or in any other suitablemanner.

D D are the adjusting-rods, secured at their ends to the front cross-barB. At an intermediate point and on their under side each is providedwith a lug or stop E, adapted to engage with one side or the other ofrear axle F. I prefer to form this handle of stiff steel wire.

If the sled is down and it is desired to raise it, the rear cross-bar Bcan be pushed up until E E will ride over F. Then pressing rearcross-bar B with the foot push forward the body of the carriage until EE drop behind F, when the sled will be locked in raised position, thefour swinging links acting like the bars of a parallel ruler, since thefour links are of equal length and the cross-bars spaced apart at anequal distance with the axles. To throw the sled down, rear cross-bar Bcan be thrown up with the toe, raising lugs E E upon the rear axle, andby pressing the foot against cross-bar B and running the body of thecarriage back lugs E E will drop in front of axle F, and the runners belocked in position on the ground.

The rods D D act as an efiective brace to runners A A against sidestrains.

In Fig. 5 I show but one runner A, suspended by similar links 0 c.

Having described my invention, I claim A sled made of a single bar orrod of metal and having runners upwardly curved at each end andcross-bars connecting at front and back the ends of said curves; a pairof links of equal length connecting the ends of said cross-barspivotally with the running-gear or frame of a childs carriage, and meansfor raising, lowering and locking the sled either 9 5 up or down.

THOMAS S. MINNISS.

\Vitnesses J. N. MOOLOSKEY, J. W. SMITH.

